- EU unveils new steel import quotas to protect its industry from competition at expense of consumers
Source: Reuters
“The European Commission unveiled quotas under the new system to limit duty-free steel imports into the EU, in a move designed to protect the bloc’s steel sector and increase its capacity utilisation. Under the new rules, the European Union’s annual tariff-free import quotas are slashed by 47% to 18.3 million metric tons, while an out-of-quota duty of 50% is introduced for 26 categories of steel products imported into the EU.” (06/30/26)
- SCOTUS agrees to review unconstitutional bans on AR-15s
Source: CNN
“The Supreme Court announced Tuesday that it will decide whether cities and states may ban people from owning AR-15 rifles and similar semi-automatic weapons, taking up a major Second Amendment dispute that it had previously declined to address. One of the appeals involving certain semi-automatic rifles came from two Illinois residents who want to purchase AR-15 style rifles but are blocked from doing so by an ordinance in Cook County that makes it unlawful to sell or possess any ‘assault weapon [sic] or large capacity magazine,’ specifically listing dozens of models that were off limits. Ten states have similar bans in place, according to the [victim disarmament] group Everytown for Gun Safety.” (06/30/26)
https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/30/politics/ar-15-style-rifles-supreme-court-second-amendment
- Italy: Arrests made after bomb attack targets investigative journalist threatened by mafia
Source: CBS News
“Italian police on Tuesday arrested four people suspected of carrying out an October bomb attack targeting a prominent journalist who had been threatened by the mafia. The blast in a residential neighborhood of Pomezia, about 12 miles south of Rome, destroyed two cars belonging to Sigfrido Ranucci, known for investigations into corruption and the mafia. Ranucci had just returned home at the time, and his daughter had walked by a half-hour before, his employer said at the time. … The explosion targeting Ranucci occurred on the eighth anniversary of the car bomb slaying of Maltese investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who wrote extensively about suspected corruption in political and business circles. Like Ranucci, she had faced dozens of libel suits intended to silence her reporting.” (06/30/26)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/arrests-bomb-attack-targets-journalist-threatened-mafia-italy/
- Republican returns to US House after months of absence over “depression”
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“Tom Kean Jr, a Republican congressman who disappeared from the Capitol for nearly four months with little explanation, re-emerged on Tuesday and said that he was absent while dealing with depression. ‘Several months ago, due to health concerns, I entered the hospital for some testing. I did not believe that this would result in a long-term stay. I was given the diagnosis of depression,’ Kean said in a speech on the floor of the House Tuesday morning. Kean, who represents a swing district in New Jersey, had last voted on 5 March before disappearing, with his office in late April saying only that he was dealing with a ‘personal health matter’ and would be back ‘soon.'” (06/30/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jun/30/tom-kean-jr-house-absence-returns
- SCOTUS upholds state laws banning transgender athletes
Source: ESPN
“The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld state laws barring transgender girls and women from playing on school athletic teams, in another setback for transgender people. The court’s six-justice conservative majority, which has repeatedly ruled against transgender Americans in the past year, ruled that state bans in Idaho and West Virginia don’t violate the Constitution. The court unanimously agreed that barring transgender girls and women also doesn’t run afoul of the federal law known as Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination in education. … Left unresolved by the outcome are lawsuits challenging state laws and regulations in Connecticut, California and elsewhere that permit transgender athletes to compete consistent with their gender identity.” [editor’s note: Unclear whether the ruling applies to private, or just government, institutions – TLK] (06/30/26)
- Inflation likely to stay “significantly above target,” top European central banker warns
Source: CNBC
“Inflation is at risk of remaining above target despite the U.S. and Iran agreeing to end their war in the Middle East, a top European central banker warned on Tuesday. Speaking to CNBC’s Annette Weisbach on the sidelines of the European Central Bank’s Forum on Central Banking in Sintra, Portugal, Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said there is a probability inflation ‘will stay at an elevated level.’ … Earlier this month, the ECB raised its key interest rate for the first time since 2023, citing inflationary pressures arising from the U.S.-Iran war. Nagel said on Tuesday that the hike was the right decision, but it is too soon to make a call on the trajectory of monetary policy, with much uncertainty still lingering around the situation in the Middle East.” (06/30/26)
- White House Ballroom Project Got Secret No-Bid Contract
Source: Washington Post
“White House officials last year secretly awarded a no-bid contract worth up to $500 million for the construction of the East Wing ballroom in an unusual arrangement that sidestepped typical contracting procedures designed to control costs, according to a copy of the agreement obtained by The Washington Post. The White House routed the contract through the Executive Residence, the document shows, an office that is exempt from rules that require federal agencies to solicit competitive bids and disclose details to the public. … The confidential contract with Clark Construction, along with related correspondence and records obtained by The Post, reveal for the first time how the Trump administration bypassed norms last summer as it set the ballroom project in motion. … Trump has repeatedly claimed that the ballroom would be paid for by private donors and once said that Clark executives offered to build it for free.” (06/30/26)
- How I Busted the Ruby Ridge Coverup
Source: Libertarian Institute
by Jim Bovard“In 1991, an ATF informant entrapped Randy Weaver into selling him two sawed-off shotguns. After ATF officials lied to a federal prosecutor, Weaver was indicted and sent the wrong court date. On August 21, 1992, after numerous illegal incursions onto Weaver’s Ruby Ridge mountaintop property near the Canadian border, three U.S. marshals dressed in Ninja outfits and carrying submachine guns ambushed Weaver’s 14-year old son and family friend Kevin Harris. One marshal shot the boy’s dog and a firefight erupted in which another marshal was killed. As Sammy Weaver ran from the scene towards the family’s ramshackle cabin, a marshal shot him in the back and killed him. The next day, the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team arrived. Within an hour of its snipers taking position, every adult in the cabin was either dead or severely wounded—even though they had not fired a shot at the FBI.” (06/30/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/how-i-busted-the-ruby-ridge-coverup
- The US Should Exit the UN
Source: Brownstone Institute
by Wendy McElroy“The UN is often viewed as an ineffectual bureaucracy that occasionally does some good. It is nothing so benevolent. Its origins may have been well-meaning, but the current UN has become what it claims to oppose. The US should leave the UN altogether and immediately, especially since its unjust policies are likely to get worse … and soon.” (06/30/26)
- Bastiat Was Right: Tariffs Make The World Poorer
Source: The Daily Economy
by Kevin Lavery“Bastiat’s Petition of the Candlemakers lays bare the absurdity of protectionism. Offering preferential treatment to less efficient domestic producers artificially raises prices, restricts consumer choice, and decreases exports. Tariffs harm consumers, workers, and exporters while failing to accomplish their stated goals: they fail to meaningfully shift the balance of trade or promote domestic industry and employment, and more generally harm everyone involved, including protected industries. Given these realities, it is no surprise that a negative opinion of tariffs has been a virtual consensus among economists for centuries — just ask Adam Smith …” (06/30/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/bastiat-was-right-tariffs-make-the-world-poorer/
- Intellectual Property versus the Unrealized
Source: Cobden Centre
by Per Bylund“Why would anyone invest large sums of capital into creating something new of uncertain income? This question captures the core of the argument for intellectual property, or the legal protection of inventors’ ideas from being copied and put to broader use. The simple logic appears intuitive and therefore persuasive, but does not stand up to scrutiny. Why? Because it applies to all entrepreneurship, which is always an investment in something of uncertain value. Yet this does not seem to stop entrepreneurs. Or, rather, it moderates which entrepreneurial projects are undertaken so that the craziest ideas are not pursued unless they are potentially very profitable.” (06/30/26)
https://www.cobdencentre.org/2026/06/intellectual-property-versus-the-unrealized/
- Bitcoin Is Not Freedom: The Delusion of Digital Escape
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Hamoon Soleimani“Within digital-libertarian circles, there is a persistent, almost religious belief that decentralized cryptocurrencies will organically starve the state of its power by enabling parallel, untaxable counter-economies. This techno-optimistic prophecy assumes that because the state cannot break the underlying mathematics of cryptography, it is effectively disarmed. Yet, this worldview conflates economic friction with true sovereignty. Treating code as an exit strategy ignores the enduring reality that human beings reside in physical space, governed by Westphalian models of territorial jurisdiction.” (06/30/26)
https://mises.org/mises-wire/bitcoin-not-freedom-delusion-digital-escape
- Has “the Revolution” Already Passed AOC By?
Source: Town Hall
by Derek Hunter“The song ‘Right Here, Right Now’ by Jesus Jones opens with the line, ‘A woman on the radio talks about revolution, when it’s already passed her by’. There are some people who peaked in high school and never got over it – never changing their hair or general style from when they were at the pinnacle of popularity. It’s sad, really, not that the person seems frozen in the midst of good memories from long ago, but that they haven’t continued to advance since then. Life has lapped them; passed them by and left them in the dust. In many ways, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is like that person who hasn’t moved forward, having been lapped by events and left behind by the ‘revolution’ she was the spokesmodel for.” (06/30/26)
- The Hidden Impact of Government Delays
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Daniel J Mitchell“Recently, members of the Trump administration found themselves in a tug of war between two groups of people who have opposing views about how or whether the federal government should regulate artificial intelligence. Critics say that moving too fast on AI could create risks. Others say that America can’t compete against China under a tight regulatory regime. We are, after all, competing in one of the most important technological races of the 21st century. But the fundamental question is much bigger than AI. Whether it is regulatory debates centered around tech, housing, energy, or healthcare, American policymakers should start each policy debate by asking themselves one important question: How much progress must we sacrifice for the sake of caution?” (06/30/26)
https://fee.org/articles/the-hidden-impact-of-government-delays/
- The seas they pillage
Source: Adam Smith Institute
by Madsen Pirie“The European Union presents itself to the world as the gold standard of regulated, enlightened governance. Nowhere is the gap between that self-image and reality more vivid than in its management, or rather mismanagement, of the seas. The Common Fisheries Policy, now over four decades old, stands as one of the more instructive monuments to what happens when a bureaucratic cartel manages a commons. Everyone takes as much as they can, the resource collapses, and Brussels announces a new action plan.” (06/30/26)
- Both ingenuity and faith deepen the AI design discussion
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff“GPT-5.3-Codex, 5.5 Pro, and 5.6 Family. Gemini 3.1 Family and 3.5 Flash. DeepSeek-V4-Pro and Flash. Claude Opus 4.8, Fable 5, and Mythos 5. Voxtral TTS and Realtime … This hodgepodge of names and numbers captures only some of the many new or upgraded artificial intelligence models released in the first six months of 2026. The technology, it’s clear, is moving by leaps and bounds. In parallel, AI firms are taking smaller but arguably just as significant steps to incorporate core principles of ethics and moral and religious reasoning into model development. Some companies are embedding in-house ‘philosophers’ to help with complex questions surrounding design ethics at the human-AI interface. Google DeepMind reportedly has 10 such individuals on staff, hiring two from Cambridge and Carnegie Mellon universities this year. And Anthropic’s Amanda Askell has been featured in multiple media reports.” (06/29/26)
- Hawaii is making a dangerous bid to suppress free speech
Source: Washington Post
by Bradley A Smith“Americans of all persuasions routinely join and support groups — typically organized as corporations — to achieve their various goals, including political ones. However, critics of the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which upheld the rights of corporations to spend money in support of political causes, insist the decision ‘corrupted’ American democracy. Hawaii has now taken the campaign against Citizens United to its logical endpoint. In May, the state enacted Act 11, a sweeping law designed to strip most incorporated organizations of the ability to engage in election- or ballot-related advocacy. Any corporations that spend money on such efforts could be suspended or dissolved. This new law is not evenhanded. Act 11 exempts newspapers, broadcasters and periodicals. These institutional media corporations retain full First Amendment rights while most other organizations lose theirs, making the government the arbiter of which corporations deserve a voice.” (06/30/26)
- The New Socialists: Elite, Ungrateful, and Toxic as Ever
Source: American Greatness
by Victor Davis Hanson“Win some blue-state and blue-city races, and the cocky new socialist Jacobins believe that they have either already taken over the Democratic Party or will soon absorb it. And in reaction to these new swarms, an increasingly terrified and ossified old Democrat guard either limps away from the hive or invites them in to take over more. It is fascinating but ultimately depressing to watch old-style Democrats say or do anything to avoid the new mob of Robespierres. Democrat candidates who recently begged for a Schumer/Pelosi/Jeffries endorsement now are telling them to get in line at the guillotine. Jewish American Democrats are terrified that what happened to the primaried and defeated Rep. Dan Goldman of New York, an arch-Trump hater, could befall them. Goldman’s obnoxious showboating hatred of Trump and championing of neo-socialist agendas offered no defense against the Jacobins’ antisemitism and hatred of Israel.” (06/30/26)
https://amgreatness.com/2026/06/30/the-new-socialists-elite-ungrateful-and-toxic-as-ever/
- It’s Time To Legalize Kei Trucks
Source: Independent Institute
by Scott Beyer“If you’ve spent time traveling the Third World—or Japan—you’ve seen them: tiny pickup trucks, built for cargo, hauling lumber, produce, construction materials, or even groups of workers. They’re ubiquitous in developing countries because they’re inexpensive, fuel-efficient, and well-suited for certain types of work. Yet for decades they’ve been largely absent from U.S. roads. That’s a shame, because the humble Japanese kei truck represents the kind of practical vehicle that would benefit Americans. … The reason Americans rarely see kei trucks has to do with regulation, not lack of demand.” (06/30/26)
https://www.independent.org/article/2026/06/30/its-time-to-legalize-kei-trucks/
- What About the Trump-Pentagon-CIA Communist Regime in Venezuela?
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger“When I see President Trump condemning the self-described democratic socialists in New York as communists, I can’t help but wonder whether the U.S. national-security establishment (i.e., the Pentagon, the CIA, and the NSA) and the Republican-controlled U.S. Congress intend to revive their old anti-communist Cold War programs like COINTELPRO, McCarthy hearings, and even state-sponsored assassinations.” (06/30/26)
https://www.fff.org/2026/06/30/what-about-the-trump-pentagon-cia-communist-regime-in-venezuela/
- What Is There to Celebrate on the 250th Anniversary of the United States of America?
Source: Common Dreams
by CJ Polychroniou“On July 4, 2026, the United States of America turns 250 years old. Should the Left celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States with the signing of the Declaration of Independence? After all, this is a nation with a very dark and ugly past—with racism, genocide, and imperialism deeply embedded in its psyche. Surely Native Americans have no reason to celebrate. The history of the United States government’s treatment of Native Americans is one of cruelty, oppression, and extermination. Leaving aside the 56 million Indigenous people that were killed by European settlers across the Americas by 1600, since its independence in 1776, the US government has launched more than 1,500 attacks against various Indigenous people, slaughtering them, and taking their lands.” (06/30/26)
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/celebrate-250-years-of-usa
- Nazi Socialism: What’s at Stake?
Source: Bet On It
by Bryan Caplan“After getting ChatGPT to score Nazi Germany’s economic freedom, I prompted it to ponder the bigger issues. … I wondered how many questions I’d have to ask to get the model to reach what I consider the correct interpretation of the historical facts. It’s like the classic ‘80s question, ‘How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?’ The answer, for both ChatGPT questions and Tootsie Pop licks, turns out to be exactly … three.” (06/30/26)
- The Clouds Behind the Supreme Court’s Common-Sense Ruling on Postmarked Ballots
Source: Washington Monthly
by Joshua A Douglas“The Republican National Committee (RNC) had hoped that its lawsuit challenging Mississippi’s mail-in balloting rule would end with a bang; instead, it fizzled into a whimper. But the Supreme Court’s decision yesterday—especially the dissent from four justices—still raises serious concerns about the Court’s fidelity to voters and their rights.” (06/30/26)
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2026/06/30/mail-in-ballots-supreme-court-ruling-postmarked-ballots/
- The Center Can Hold
Source: Law & Liberty
by Lee Oser“Modernity is more than mere anarchy.” (06/30/26)
- Quantum Vibe, 06/30/26
Source: Big Head Press
by Scott BieserCartoon. (06/30/26)
- Senator Susan Collins and the nation’s national defense
Source: Fox News
by Hugh Hewitt“Extraordinarily gifted legislators in the United States Senate are rare. As preconditions to their effectiveness, they must accumulate both significant seniority in the body of 100, and the respect of their ever-changing 99 colleagues. It’s a small club — the United States Senate — and everyone knows who has got the ability and the respect to guide big lifts through the (intentionally) complicated process. Maine Sen. Susan Collins is one of the handful of senators who command the respect of her Republican Conference colleagues and most of the Democratic senators who actually care about making the country run well. That is why Collins is the chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee and is also one of the 17 senators on the critical Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. (Collins is also a member of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.)” (06/30/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/morning-glory-senator-susan-collins-nations-national-defense
- Workers must defend their right to private opinions
Source: spiked
by Andrew Tettenborn“It’s all very well to say that the general law allows you to speak your mind, but that doesn’t mean very much if an employer can sack you for expressing a view they happen to disagree with. And it’s easy to forget that it isn’t a matter of just a few people. Lawyers, doctors, accountants, financial professionals, architects, chartered surveyors, chemists, physiotherapists, nurses, teachers, social workers – the list of those who have to watch carefully what they say because the regulator might come down on them if they step out of line is a long one. Furthermore, regulators can use these powers fairly drastically. Alleged Islamophobia, racism and sexism expressed online, or simply matters seen as offensive or contrary to a profession’s ‘values’, are common grounds for people being hit with severe professional penalties or being drummed out entirely.” (06/30/26)
- How Hunter Biden Won the Internet
Source: Wired
by Alana Hope Levinson & Makena Kelly“In a little over a month, Biden has amassed over 800,000 followers and materially changed his image—in part by giving hours-long, shockingly intimate interviews to independent media outlets like Channel 5, Armchair Expert, and Soft White Underbelly. He’s even talked to former foes like Candace Owens, who once called him a ‘degenerate that should be in prison.’ He’s fed the trolls—and everyone is eating.” (06/30/26)
- Law & Liberty Podcast, 06/30/26
Source: Law & Liberty
“Hillsdale’s Bradley J. Birzer joins James Patterson to talk about the Declaration of Independence. They discuss the American colonies’ devout Protestantism, their love of the classics, and their identification with the Anglo-Saxon constitutional tradition. Birzer concludes with a stirring assessment of why the Constitution matters.” (06/30/26)
- Trump Watch, 06/30/26
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
“Perpetual War, Conflict, and Chaos for Americans.” (06/30/26)
- The Bryan Hyde Show, 06/30/26
Source: The Bryan Hyde Show
“Eric Peters from Eric Peters Autos joins me to talk about our upcoming Independence Day celebration, what it represents and why so few people seem to remember its basis.” (06/30/26)
- Rising, 06/30/26
Source: The Hill
“Robby Soave gives his radar on recently discovered old tweets from Darializa Avila Chevalier, where she made ‘sympathetic references’ to communist figures.” (06/30/26)
- Ron Paul Liberty Report, 06/30/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“Did The Supremes Get Birthright Citizenship Right?” (06/29/26)
http://www.ronpaullibertyreport.com/archives/did-the-supremes-get-birthright-citizenship-right
- The Daily Blast With Greg Sargent, 06/30/26
Source: The New Republic
“Trump Erupts in Fury at SCOTUS as His Plot to Rig Midterms Collapses.” (06/30/26)
https://newrepublic.com/article/212510/trump-rages-wildly-scotus-losses-plot-rig-midterms-collapses
- Checks & Balances, 06/30/26
Source: Checks & Balances
“The Justice Department is Broken. Here’s How We Fix It.” (06/30/26)
https://chkbal.substack.com/p/the-justice-department-is-broken
- The Good Fight, 06/30/26
Source: Yascha Mounk
“Charles Fain Lehman on Why Cities Got Safer.” (06/30/26)